Adding Coffee to a Porter?

I'm thinking about adding some java to my bottling bucket for an extra kick for a Christmas porter. :rockin: Has anyone done this before? What has worked best for you?

I did this for a Mr. Beer kit in the past. I would suggest adding 1 oz. (strong coffee, see below) to each bottle.

To make strong coffee, put in like 12 scoops of coffee to 12 "cups" of water. It turned out really well!

You might want to check byo.com. Brew your own magazine did an issue on this last year (May-June 2010), and that article or some recipes might be on there. There's several ways to do it depending on whether you want some coffee flavor or an "in-your-face" coffee hit.

I didn't add it to the bottling bucket but to the mash. I think I used about 8 oz. of dark coffee and it turned out great.

I just added coffee to one of my stouts. I made two french press strong coffees. Both bathes included about 4 oz of coffee ground steeped in 25 oz of water for 5 minutes each. They were pressed and added directly to the secondary. I did two batches of coffee because my press wasn't large enough.

Don't know how heavy you want to go but another approach is to sprinkle some fresh coffee grounds on the head after pouring. Makes for a nice presentation and gives you that good aroma.

I did exactly what you are thinking about doing.... I put 16oz. of espresso into my priming tank, along with the priming sugar. If you wanted variety, I would suggest bottling half the brew as is, then add 8oz. of espresso to the last half of the brew. That way you get two distinct flavors with the same batch. I think it was my best so far.

NRS



Planned: Vanilla Porter,
Brewing:HolidayAle Bottled: Bavarian Hefeweizen, Belgian Triple, Lemon Wheat
Gone but not forgotten: Brown Ale, Holiday Ale, Raspberry Wheat, Espresso